At long last I've got my 1989 W-150 here in South Carolina and I can finally begin its restoration. I'll keep you guys up on the progress and will be asking you (quite a lot) for tips and solutions. This will be a complete overhaul to include the engine, drivetrain, some body work and whatever else crops up along the way.
First up is the transmission. I drove this beast down here from Vermont and it cost me $442.50 in gas to get it here. With that shocker still smarting I'm thinking I might skip the tranny overhaul and just replace it with an overdrive model. Where is a reliable place to buy one? What else will I need to change out besides the tranny itself and the indicator in the instrument panel? Will I have to do anything with the computer?
Second is the engine. I'm not jumping headfirst into this just yet, instead I'm going to save up the needed while I wait for the weather to cool off a bit in the fall. Right now the plan is to pull the engine and tranny, disassemble the engine and send the block and heads off to be profesionally cleaned and magnafluxed to make sure there's nothing cracked. I'll have the cylinders bored out just enough to true them up while at the same time having the heads fixed up too. A friend of mine knows several reliable machine shops in this area so that shouldn't be a problem. What I'm wondering here is what brands of pistons, rods, etc are the better ones to go with. I'm not looking to race this thing, I just want to reinstall an engine that will as reliable as the one I pulled out.
Much more to come...

 

For a stock type rebuild or mildly modified cast pistons are fine also stock rods should be fine, just have them resized and maybe some new ARP rod bolts. The later style 46re? trans should bolt right up with a different mount and a shorter driveshaft There are some considerations for the operation of the overdrive. Or you could get a gear Vendors overdrive unit for your trans

 

You might want to look for the rh trans with the 3 pin connector, 1 is ground 1 each for lock-up and OD. the re has 7 pin and exchanges info with the computer to shift, lock-up and adjust engine needs. Any simple switch putting power to the correct pin brings in OD on the rh.

 

Found a new problem today when I went to replace the fuel tank straps. The frame mount for the rear strap has rusted to the point of needing replacing itself. The two frame rails are fine but that crossmember was in a difficult location to be undercoated and is now paper thin. I'll start looking in the local junkyards but does anyone know if there is a website to order frame parts from?

 

Good luck and a junkyard is a good place to start...don't take this the wrong way but this is a new smile just added....

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I am getting ready to part out an 84 that is solid but was rolled.
Let me know if you can't find anything and I will get you a quote with shipping included.
Good Luck with your build and have some fun.Being from South Carolina, you should have no problem finding what you need, but just in case.

 

I'm wondering if it might just be best to get a 5.2 or 5.6 mpfi, magnum roller motor, with the od trans and try to get the new computer to work as a stand alone unit. I'm sure this has been done before. Maybe some head work, a Mopar performance computer compatible RV cam, good exhaust and headers. A nice set-and-forget package!

 

Roll this around in your head for a bit; get a motor and tranny from a 92-93 W150/W250 and swap that in. They should have the OD tranny that you are looking for and are still a simple swap in.

As for the cross member, what about a piece od angle iron, C-channel or box or DOM tubing welded in its place and then make up a new strap?